In 1970s, a film was released that had a very well-known premise: a princess fighting for a good cause and the guys who helped her on the way. Together they fought the evil Empire and in the process discovered their true selves and their hidden strength…or should we say the Force.

The storyline was simple enough – the eternal good vs evil, but it was the set-up that proved those movies to be light-years(!) ahead of their time. You see, it all happened “a long time ago in a galaxy far far away…”.

“Star Wars” was quite an appropriate tribute to the decades when the space war between USA and Russia was at its peak with both countries racing for landmarks in space, i.e, first man in the space, first man on the moon and so on.

The fascination to find a life outside earth, to connect with someone who does not belong to Earth was becoming stronger and a series that showed us spacecrafts travelling to and fro amongst various solar systems and planets filled with amazing peoples was bound to be the biggest hit of all time.

But a major problem with creating something so spectacularly successful, is to repeat the feat. The first trilogy of Episode IV, V and VI was a cult-setter in more than one ways, but Episode VI was still felt as a bit of a let down by a lot of fans. However, the series kept on working its magic for more than 20 years and when the next trilogy consisting of Episode I, II and III was announced, fans were thrilled. These films however did not live quite upto their expectations. Saying that, they still make a watchable trio and does provide some justification to Darth Vader’s darkness.

Not surprisingly, like all other futuristic set-ups, the worlds in Star Wars are also ruled by ruthless thugs while the common folks struggle to make a decent living on most planets. The basic emotions and greed for power and money remain the same across galaxies and people – human or otherwise – are just pawns in these games.

But, where there is darkness there has got to be light. And the true shining stars of this future world are the Jedis. Those who learn the ways of the Force, who control emotions and minds and who keep the balance in the universe.

In fact, there is a very strong resemblance between teachings of Jedi and what dear Lord Krishna preached in the Bhagvadgeeta, especially the characteristics of a “Sthitpragya“. The ultimate aim is to attain that state where no one is a friend or an enemy, to get rid of anger, greed, desires, ego, etc. and fight not for personal gain, but to restore peace and protect the weak.

And at the end of the first two trilogies, life had completed a circle as what Anakin Skywalker aka Darth Vader had destroyed, was restored by his son Luke and daughter Leia. The Jedi were back and the Empire was destroyed. But, history has a peculiar habit of repeating itself. So, the story continues in Episode VII, “The Force Awakens“, with the next generation, with children of Luke and Leia.

The worlds are back in the clutch of the evil “First Order” (quite a likeness to “Hail Hitler” era in appearance of officer and troops) that came out of the ashes of the Empire. The good guys are called the Resistance and led by no other than General Leia Organa.

The devilish master of the First Order has found a new apprentice in the son of Leia and Han Solo called Kylo Ren (incidentally, not the best casting of the film), who aspires to be the next Darth Vader but is still not quite free of the power of Light. Luke Skywalker disappeared years ago and with him the Jedi tradition also appears to have been lost.

So, this time it is the search for Luke. Our lovely droids are back in the game with hidden information that can lead to Luke and amongst a lot of spectacular fight sequences we find the new team in form of a scavenger girl Rey living on a junkyard of a planet called Jakku, Finn who is a rebelling stormtrooper and dear old pair of smugglers Han Solo and Chewy.

The film proceeds along similar line as that of Episode IV. We are given a very big version of original “Death Star”, and a brave fighter called Poe Dameron with his equally courageous team who manages to blow it up. But, the highlights of the film are Rey discovering the Force within her and fighting Kylo Ren. Hate to spoil it for you, but the film leaves you with a feeling that Rey is Luke’s daughter and the next Jedi in line, just as the next Darth Vader is the son of Leia.

So, what’s new? Well, the CGI fights are better than ever and the story is told simply and neatly. The film delivers on the promised line and if you forgive the slack pace of first half an hour, moves swiftly and even though predictably, still remains entertaining. Also, I couldn’t help thinking that the planets must have been populated from different parts of UK, with such strong Scottish and British accents !! 🙂 There are a fair bit of funny moments to lighten the mood every now and then.

It was clear right from the conceptualization stage, that the film would be a humongous hit, and it has proved to be so. In fact, there is absolutely no doubt that the next two episodes due to release in 2016 and 2017 are also going to be commercially very successful. But, the fans love the fact that the series has returned…………..and the key always was to keep it simple and straight……

VFX Breakdown:

For the viewers who are curious about how the filming took place, and ultimately how special effects made it remarkable; here is the visual effects breakdown video…

Summary

Worth watching in cinema hall… May the Force Be With You……….
Our Ratings: 8 out of 10.

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